Footwear



Jan. 17, 19156 G. P. T. BIDEGAIN FOOTWEAR Filed Jan. 8, 1954 IN vf/vroRf --lllllllllll w United States Patent O FOOTWEAR Georges Prosper Thomas Bidegain, Pau, France Application January 8, 1954, Serial No. 403,006 Claims priority, application France January 13, 1953 2 Claims. (Cl. S16-8.5)

The present invention is concerned with footwear of all kinds and, in particular, with footwear for children ot the kind in which the sole of the shoe rises at the back to form a support, the leg portion of the shoe being sewn along the entire edge of the rising and projecting portion of the sole.

In all the kinds of footwear with rising soles which exist at the present time, the sole, properly so-called, forms a rounded curved portion at the heel, at the point at which the sole rises towards the top of the shoe in order to form the support for the ankle.

A rounded curve of this kind facilitates the assembly and the sewing of the shoe, but it has the serious drawback that it creates a tendency for the foot to rock backwards; this curved portion can thus cause an infant to fall when it just begins to walk, since there is not sufficient seating and steadiness of the rear portion of the shoe which supports its heel.

The object of the present invention is to make improvements in footwear of the kind referred to, which completely eliminate this serious disadvantage.

The invention consists essentially of two members which may be adapted to the shoe separately from each other, or they may be adapted together, or they may be both assembled together beforehand to form a single piece.

The iirst member is constituted by a heel which is roughly horizontal and which lifts up the sole to a greater extent than is achieved in footwear of the kind referred to, which is available at the present time.

The sole of the shoe being previously made slightly narrower in its rising portion, the second member is made to correspond with the said rising portion and ts exactly to the contour of the sole at this place. This second portion is provided at its base with an additional thickness of material located opposite to the rounded portion of the sole at the point at which this latter begins to rise upwards. This additional thickness iills in the external part of the rounded shape formed by the sole at this same point.

The iirst portion completes the seating of the shoe and, when assembled to the second portion fitted to the rising portion of the sole, forms a full right-angled ridge at the rear of the shoe approximately opposite to the heel of the child inside the shoe.

rthis gives perfect stability and seating to the shoe and removes all possibility of rocking of the feet towards the rear, which up to now was the case with all the footwar with rising soles existing up to the present time.

One manner of carrying out the invention will now be described by way of example, in the attached draw ings in which:

Fig. 1` is a view in elevation of a shoe in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a rear view of the same shoe;

Fig. 3 is a view of the underside of the shoe;

Fig, 4 is a view in longitudinal cross-section, and to a larger scale, of the shoe showing the parts in elevation.

ICC

Fig. 5 is a view similar to that of Fig. 4 of a modified form of the invention.

In the form of embodiment shown, which illustrates the right foot of a pair of childrens shoes, there is shown at 10 (Fig. 4) the first inner sole of skin and, at 11, the outer sole of leather.

The sole as a whole comprises at its rear portion a rounded part 12 which rises vertically at 13, the upper 14 of the shoe conforms to the sole shaped in this way.

Between the inner sole 10 and the outer sole 11, there is preferably, but not necessarily, arranged a support 15 (Figs. 3 and 4) which is stuck in position to form a support for the arch of the foot.

This support 15 is made of a half-circle of sponge rubber, of leather or of any other material having a thick straight edge 16 and a thinner curved edge 17, the edge 16 being adhered to the internal side of the edge of the shoe, while the edge 17 extends towards the center of the shoe and tapers in thickness, thus forming a support which effectively holds the arch of the childs foot.

In accordance with the invention, an external heel 19 is provided (Figs. l to 4) at the rear of the shoe thus constituted. The heel 19 comprises an assembly of two portions including a horizontal portion shown at 20 and a vertical portion shown at 21. The heel 19 has a generally elbowed shape with a horizontal portion 20 extending under the rear part of the shoe and said vertical portion 21 extending in conjunction with the rising rear portion 13 of the sole.

The rising part 21 is secured along the whole length of the rear portion 13 of the sole and tits exactly to its contour. It is thinned off at its edges in order that the thick* ness is not increased, except at its base 22 where the addtional thickness acts as a support and thus forms a full right-angled ridge 23, which ensures a solid seating at the rear and removes all risk of rocking backwards.

Grooves 24 are formed under the portion 20 of the heel in order to avoid any tendency to slip, and, as is more particularly to be seen in Fig. 3, the forward extremity of the portion 20 is formed in the shape of a V, the arms of which separate towards the front and the sides of the shoe.

The arm 25 of the V, which is located on the inner side of the shoe, projects farther towards the front than the other arm 26 so as to provide an effective support to the member 15 which supports the arch of the foot.

While Fig. 4 shows a construction in which the members 20 and 21 are separate elements Fig. 5 shows a similar construction in which the members 20 and 21 are integral.

It will, of course, be understood that the invention is not limited to the form of embodiment described and shown, but includes all alternative forms.

What I claim is:

l. In a shoe having an extension of the sole turned from a lower convex curved part upwards at the back to form the rear portion of the shoe, an elbow shaped heel comprising a horizontal portion extending under the rear of the said sole and a substantially vertical portion having the same contour as the rising portion of said sole extension, said heel having an increased thickness adjacent the juncture of said horizontal and vertical portions to provide surfaces contoured to contact and register with the lower convex curved part of the sole extension and external rear surface, forming a substantially sharp right angle with the lower surface of the horizontal heel portion to resist rearward overturn of the shoe.

2. A shoe as claimed in claim 1 wherein the said vertical portion is co-extensive with the upper end of said sole extension.

(References on following page) 

